Basics
Every question on the site tagged Basics, each answered from a timestamped source rather than a summary written from memory.
Notes from our sources
What a samput mantra is and how it is chosen
The speaker says a Samput means binding one mantra in the middle of another, fencing it in. The mantra used for the wish being pursued is the samput mantra, and it is recited around each root mantra of the text being read. Which mantra becomes the samput is therefore decided by the wish, not by the text.
Should someone without the sacred thread (Yajnopavita) recite the Om (Pranava) prefix in a mantra?
Initiated practice (Diksha) under a competent master is essential for specific mantra recitations, and those who do not wear the sacred thread should omit the Pranava (Om) prefix where scriptural rules specify it.
Which verse is used to purify oneself before sitting?
The speaker gives the verse as: "ॐ अपवित्रः पवित्रो वा सर्वावस्थां गतोऽपि वा। यः स्मरेत् पुण्डरीकाक्षं स बाह्याभ्यन्तरः शुचिः॥". By it, he explains, we remember Bhagavan Pundarikaksha, by whose mere remembrance we may attain purity both within and without, and impurity be removed. Have faith in the name of that Pundarikaksha, that Bhagavan Narayan; understand the mahatmya of that mantra; recite it, sprinkle water, and then sit down and do it.
What is it that the devatas want, and how are they nourished?
Mantra. If we do mantra path properly, with pure pronunciation and in maximum quantity, the devas are nourished. No yajna can ever happen without mantra, and no special vidhi-kriya can happen without mantra. The bhava world is separate — bhakti of the Mahashaktis is done by bhava.
Why is Surya said to matter for mantras at all?
The speaker says there is no possibility of life on this earth without Bhagavan Surya Narayan, since all the grahas move by him and all herbs and plants are nourished by his rays. The Moon is held to be the karak and the strength of mantras, and the Moon's light comes from Surya — so the strength Surya gives to Chandra is what makes our mantras more nourished and more powerful.
How should an ordinary person do Surya pujan?
Gayatri is not for everyone, the speaker says — the matter of adhikar and anadhikar arises — but the tantrokta Surya mantra and the Pauranik mantra are available everywhere. He gives the mantra as "जपा कुसुम संकासम कश्यप महादुतिम तमोवरिम सर्व पापाघनम प्रणतोस्मि दिवाकर", which anyone at all may speak, and says to recite it even twelve times daily standing before Surya Narayan.
Who may recite the Pauranik Surya mantra, and what is it prescribed for?
The speaker says that in today's time everyone wants a government job, and for that this mantra should certainly be recited twelve times daily while looking at Surya Narayan. For this, he says, you do not need the yajnopavita, and there is no need to look at whether it is a man or a woman: it is a Pauranik mantra, composed by Vedavyas ji.
How is Surya pujan performed in short?
If you go into pujan proper there is a vast vidhan, Vedic and tantrokta, the speaker says; ordinarily, do the two methods he has given. The Pauranik mantra — which he here gives as "जपा कुसुम संकासम कास्यपेयं महाद्युतिम" — should be recited twelve times while looking at Surya Narayan. Give arghya and then recite twelve times looking at him. That much will be plenty.
What is the Pauranik mantra of Mata Durga?
Asked what the Pauranik mantra of Mata Durga would be, on the pattern of the Pauranik Surya mantra, the speaker answers that the entire Saptashati is itself Pauranik mantra — it is filled with them.
What may be offered for the pitrs through Surya Narayan?
For the sake of the pitrs, and for the grace of Surya Narayan, the speaker says one may do it with the Pauranik japa kusum mantra — attainment will come from that too.
Which mantra should be used for the smaran of Bhairav ji?
Asked which mantra to use for the smaran of Bhairav ji, the speaker says to use his dhyan mantra — "करकलित कपाल कुंडली दंड पानी" — and to remember him with that. Or use this mantra: "करतु समय सपरिया विघ्न विच्छेद हेतुर्जयति बटुकनाथ सिद्ध साधका नाम". Or utter his ten names: "कपाली कुंडली भैरवो भी मलोचना".
Can a mantra be converted into a taaran mantra?
Asked how any mantra of God is converted into a taaran mantra, he asks in return why it should be converted, and whether the questioner has the capacity to change the fundamental nature of any mantra. Neither you nor I, he says, have the capacity to change a mantra's mool tattva and make a taaran mantra of it. The taaran mantra becomes for you that very name upon which you depend and in which you keep shraddha.
What is a mantra, and how is it connected to the moon?
What then is a mantra, he asks: that which gives counsel to the mind — it is running in the mind itself. As he said at the outset: mind, mantra, Chandrama. Chandrama has been called the karak of the mind; authority over the mind belongs to Chandrama. The strength of Chandrama waxes and wanes, and an effect falls upon the mind; the effect of a mantra falls in exactly the same way. When by the mantra we make Chandrama strong, then when Chandrama becomes strong our mantra begins to give fruit, and our mind is in our own control.
May one get a tattoo of Mahadev?
Asked by a listener who wishes to have a tattoo of Mahadev made, he says: have it made — in his view one should have the pratik chinh of God made. If you have symbolic pictures connected with Mahadev made, the trishul, the damru, all such things, then it is more beneficial. And if you have a mantra or the like written, it should not be Vedic.
Is there a mantra that should never be recited or sung?
Answering a listener who has written out a mantra, the speaker says that the mantra written is never to be recited, never to be spoken, and should not be used in bhajan kirtan either. It is an exceedingly special mantra. Say Har Har Mahadev, he tells him.
What is the pavitrikaran mantra and what does it mean?
He asks what we say when we read the pavitrikaran mantra, and gives it: अपवित्रः पवित्रो वा सर्वावस्थां गतोऽपि वा। यः स्मरेत् पुण्डरीकाक्षं स बाह्याभ्यन्तरः शुचिः॥ So, he says, we are remembering Bhagavan Pundarikaksha: that in whatever state we may be, purify us outside and inside. That is, by remembering Bhagavan Pundarikaksha we become pure in every way. Hold this bhavana in that mantra.
May phatkar and hunkar be added to sabar mantras in a havan?
Asked whether phatkar, hunkar and the like are all right in the havan of sabar mantras, he says only that a sabar mantra should be spoken exactly as it is, and nothing should be attached to it by oneself, because then the ling of that mantra changes. Mantras have also been divided into all three — masculine, feminine and neuter — and according to whatever we attach at the end, whether we add phatkar, whether hunkar, whether vashat, its distinction follows. If you add it of your own accord, its very nature will change; this is why it should not be done.
Does one need special permission to recite the names of a deity?
For sadhana of the names of the Lord and so forth, there is never any need to ask anything special, the speaker says — especially for the Ashtottara Shatanama, for the twelve names, and for the sahasranama and the like. In the sahasranama, in the "da"-syllables, the "ka"-syllables and all of them, one has to look a little at whether you have the practice, because clarity of the tongue becomes very necessary: it should not be slurred, the pronunciation should not be wrong. Beyond that there is no special matter.
The daily havan of the kul prayog: the rot, the thirty ahutis and their order, and the ash
The speaker says fire is kindled in the earthen pot or kund with cow-dung upale or mango wood. Beforehand, after bathing, a Rot is made from wheat flour, Gud and ghee with a little black Til, cooked in ghee, then crumbled and divided into thirty pieces: twenty-seven for the Kuldevi and three more. Facing out of the house and working quickly, with the mantras said in the mind, the first three Ahuti go to Ganesha, the kul guru and Hanuman; if the Kulguru is known he comes first and Ganpati second, otherwise Ganpati first. The remaining twenty-seven are offered in the kuldevi's name with namah added and no Om, for example Durgaya namah, swaha being optional; if her name is unknown one says kuldibbe namah swaha. He says namah is compulsory here and the usual havan rule of swaha without namah does not apply. Afterwards water is taken in the hand, circled three times round the kund and poured there, the fire is left to burn out, and the ash is removed and collected in one place.
What benefit is there in adding om before and after every mantra?
Asked what benefit there is in placing om before and after every mantra, he says the answer he has is so fine, but that it is a public platform and it should not be given; such words should not be used by him. He will say only this much: do not do it. One should not apply it by one's own whim. He notes the Shiv Tandav can absolutely be done. And he allows that if your guru is telling you some special vidhi vidhan, telling you the use of nishkilan and the like, then whatever is done in that is a different matter — for the rest, one should not do it like this oneself.
What is a mantra, and what are the four categories of mantras?
A mantra is a combination of sounds, syllables, or words designed to invoke a particular energy — with or without translatable meaning — and Hindu tradition classifies them into four groups: Vedic, Puranic, tantric, and Sabar.
What makes Vedic mantras unique, and who is permitted to practice them?
Vedic mantras are considered apourusheya (not of human authorship) — eternal cosmic sound-patterns "seen" by Rishis rather than composed by them — and their practice traditionally requires upanayanam (the sacred thread ceremony) restricted to the three twice-born varnas, alongside daily rites like sandhyavandanam.
How do Puranic mantras differ from Vedic mantras?
Puranic mantras, addressed to specific deities like Vishnu, Shiva, Devi, or Ganesha, are considered simpler and more accessible than Vedic mantras — not requiring the elaborate swara/intonation training Vedic chanting demands — and are widely used across popular devotional worship.
Where do tantric mantras come from, and why do many require formal diksha?
Tradition holds that Shiva revealed an immense number of tantric mantras — sometimes said to number seven crore — from his five or six divine faces, covering every deity and category of being; the author explains that mantras tied to great, fierce deities require formal diksha because initiation purifies the disciple of impurities (malas) blocking their receptivity to such intense energies.
How does a guru decide which mantra suits a particular disciple?
Beyond observing a disciple's nature and karmic inclinations, a guru may use tantric astrological diagnostic methods like the Tara Chakra, Kulakula Chakra, or Rashi Chakra to assess compatibility — though certain deities and mantras (forms of Kali, Tara, sometimes Ganesha or Bhairava) are considered universally suitable in Kali Yuga without needing this examination.
What is mantra chaitanya, and why is it described as the ultimate aim of mantra sadhana?
Mantra chaitanya is the "awakening" of a mantra — the point where the deity-consciousness within it merges, partially or fully, with the practitioner's own consciousness after sustained repetition and repeated purushcarana — after which the deity is said to guide the sadhaka's spiritual ascent from within the heart chakra.
Is Shmashan Bhairav the same as Mahabhairav?
The Shmashan Bhairav form of Bhagavan is itself called the Mahabhairav form, he says — Mahakal Bhairav, Mahabhairav. By tantra bheda the two forms are indeed separate, but in their mula swaroop there are many similarities, and the mantra of each of them is called a mantraraj.
What does mantraraj mean, and who may be called Rajarajeshwari?
Not every mantra is called a mantraraj, he says, and not every devi can be called Rajarajeshwari. People write Rajarajeshwari even in front of lok devis, even in front of the shaktis of the shamshaan. When a form of Bhagavati or of Bhagavan has been adorned with some particular word, there is a reason behind it.
There should be no distinction between the mantra, the guru and the aradhya, and he himself sees his guru as Bhagavati made manifest
Whoever the guru may be, he says, he himself sees his guru in the form of Bhagavati made manifest; it has been said that there should be no distinction between the mantra, the guru and the aradhya. Take this as his guru mantra: whether you regard him as an elder brother, a son, a guru, a friend or an enemy, and even if you bear him ill will, if you are on the path of sadhana then you are dear to him — so long as you do not become vidharmi. Keep the ill will if you wish, he says; that is a personal matter of disagreement. But if you are doing sadhana, then somewhere there will be some protection, sometime Bhagavati will give buddhi, sometime you will be of use to someone and will strengthen Sanatan.
What is gained by searching out a mantra for yourself?
Read your shastra yourself so that nobody can answer you back, so that you become capable of answering others, and so that your faith in your devatas, your ishta and your aradhya increases. When you see some mantra on the channel, search for it: in searching, ten other things will come to your knowledge, you will be motivated according to shastra, and you will come out of confusion — after which your development follows intellectually, spiritually and materially alike.
Where is the Mahabhairav mantra available?
The Mahabhairav mantra has been given on the channel, the speaker says — search for it, and if you search on YouTube for Mahabhairav mantra Grihastha Tantra it will come. Listen to it: he has told the whole Mahabhairav mantra in the middle of the video. There is no PDF of it; it will appear on the screen in the middle of the video itself.
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